2011 American Girl is local girl

American Girl photos
Kanani Akina at her shave ice stand. Check out the realistic plastic cups and her rubber slippers.

ENTER TO WIN! » Through April 15, create a Kanani-themed postcard atamericangirl.com/ girloftheyear to be entered in a drawing to win a Kanani doll and book. See the American Girl catalog at americangirl.com, or request a catalog by calling 800-845-0005. » Design an outfit for Kanani and win a doll in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser's American Girl 2011 Girl of the Year Giveaway.

Kanani Akina debuts as the 2011 emblem of the American Girl line of dolls

By Nadine Kam

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Along with the start of the new year, tomorrow brings the debut of American Girl's 2011 Girl of the Year, who happens to be from Kauai, the first in the popular series of dolls to come from Hawaii.

Kanani Akina is an 18-inch doll with tawny skin, dark hair and hazel eyes, and the launch coincides with the release of two books by Lisa Yee, "Aloha, Kanani" and "Good Job, Kanani," that tell her back story. This includes friends who surf; her duties at the family shave ice shop, Akina's Shave Ice and Sweet Treats; and a cousin from New York who has trouble adjusting to Kanani's local lifestyle.

Every effort was made to get the details correct, including consulting with local cultural experts Peter Apo and Maile Meyer.

Kanani dolls will be available for one year, and in addition to her "meet" outfit of a blue, floral-print cotton dress and beaded necklace, other clothing options include a swimsuit, board shorts, "Aloha" T-shirt, denim capris and a hula halau ensemble with uli uli and lei.

Other accessories include a paddleboard set, shave ice stand and plush monk seal to reflect Kanani's love of Hawaii's ocean creatures. American Girl will donate $1 (up to $100,000) for each Kanani plush monk seal sold in 2011 to the National Wildlife Federation to help raise awareness about endangered animals.<

Prices range from $100 for the doll and book, about $28 for extra outfits, and $29 to $50 for girls' outfits to match the doll's.

AMERICAN GIRL is a division of Mattel Inc., started 25 years ago with a mission to celebrate girlhood. In 1992, the company launched American Girl magazine, which has grown to 500,000 subscribers.

American Girl spokeswoman Stephanie Spanos said developing a new character is an 18-month process that begins with reader surveys and focus groups that aim to gauge "who girls are today. We're always looking for interests girls have, activities they're into, issues they're facing," she said.

The 2010 American Girl, Lanie, is described as a nature girl, a response to girls' dilemma of living in urban or suburban landscapes, surrounded by technology and concrete, and feeling disconnected from nature.

When it came to determining the qualities of the 2011 Girl of the Year, Spanos said, "we started seeing that what is most important to our clientele is helping people and animals."

As for where the Girl of the Year's hails from, "Hawaii rose to the top," she said.

Aside from the isles' physical beauty, "Hawaii is exotic without being too foreign to young readers, while being uncommon in children's fiction and offering something unique in aloha spirit," she said. "It's that relaxed spirit of good will and community that we wanted to share with girls."

In the story "Aloha, Kanani" that accompanies the doll, Kanani is proud of her island lifestyle, but when her well-to-do cousin Rachel arrives from New York, with her trendy clothes and gold—not puka-shell—jewelry, Kanani starts to see everything around her, from local museums, the saimin she eats, to the peeling paint of her family store as being less charming and more shabby compared with Rachel's experiences at NYC's Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum.

Although author Lisa Yee is from South Pasadena, Calif., she had written "Good Luck, Ivy," for an American Girl historical character, Ivy Ling, a 9-year-old Chinese-American girl growing up in 1970s San Francisco.

Yee said she was thrilled to get the call regarding the Hawaii doll.

"I knew it was about a girl growing up in the islands and I should probably include an animal in the story. Beyond that, other than being about the aloha spirit, the story was pretty much up to me," Yee said by phone from her home.

"It was a dream project. Her family runs a shave ice stand, so I had to eat shave ice. They also sell sweet treats, so whenever I saw a bakery, I had to stop."

In researching the book, Yee was drawn to the plight of the honu (sea turtle) and Hawaiian monk seal, and her decision to focus on the endangered seal led her to set the story on Kauai, where she found help from members of the Kauai Monk Seal Watch Program.

Although her aim had been to find one of the creatures sunning on the beach, days of searching were fruitless. Finally, while en route to the airport to head home, she got a call about a sighting.

"I didn't know what to do, but for me, it might have been a once-in-a-lifetime experience so I turned the car around and it was a thrill to see the seal on the beach. I was dressed for my trip to L.A., but there I was with sneakers and long pants, running in the sand!

"It was so amazing. If I had gotten the call 20 minutes later I would have missed it."

Kanani in her halau outfit.

BEFORE WORKING with American Girl, Yee said , she knew about the company and the quality of its products, but considers herself to be "more of a stuffed-animal person."

She says she respects the company even more now. "The detail they put into everything they create is so amazing. They call on a lot of experts because it's crucial to get everything right.

"I've been to American Girl events where I've met the readers, who absorb the stories, and when you see the girls with these dolls, you see how they've made them part of their family. The books are a way for young readers to experience different lifestyles, see different parts of the world, and they can do that sitting in their own home."

The intent of the book is not to convey an overt message or moral, but in Kanani's case, Yee said, "It's really about aloha spirit—thinking about others, not just yourself."

Duo cultivates fashion at Pineapples boutique

Pineapples photos
A halter maxi dress with shell detail in a black-knit print, from Pineapples' Margarita line, is $95. Below, a twist-front summer dress from the Bali Batiks collection, with "Devine" print, $70.

By Nadine Kam
nkam@staradvertiser.com


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Geri Berger was working as an outreach counselor with homeless teens in Waikiki when motherhood called and she ended up taking a few years off to raise her own child.

Once she was ready to return to work, a meeting with 17-year clothing manufacturer and wholesaler Sandra Tierney, whose husband was a longtime friend of Berger's husband, turned both their lives around.


Tierney had already made the life-changing move from Florida to Hawaii about four years ago and was toying with the idea of making the leap to retail. In Berger, she found someone versed in contemporary fashion and she welcomed her input. 

Today, the former counselor is the chief designer and consultant for Tierney's Pineapples boutique in Haleiwa.

"It came up really casually," Berger said. "Next thing you know, she dragged me to the North Shore and showed me an opportunity to create a unique store."

Although the boutique carries a handful of mainland labels such as Hale Bob and Funky Planet, Tierney wanted to create her own lines to avoid the trap of looking like every other boutique in town. So Berger has her hands full coming up with designs for the store's four collections:

» Bali Batiks Resort wear, featuring dresses made with hand-dyed and batik designs.

» Margarita Resort Wear, using herringbone rayon fabric in a variety of prints for everyday, resort or work wear.

» Zen Knits, a contemporary line comprising casual dresses and separates in solids, prints and tie-dye. It also encompasses the Zen Party Collection of special occasion dresses, tops and outfits embellished with beadwork, brass and crystals.
» The Pineapples Collection, which comprises a Tie Dye Voile Collection and embroidered Cutwork Collection of dresses.

The boutique makes the rare attempt to make everyone happy by offering something for everyone at every price point. The resort-style clothing ranges in size from XXS to 3X, and most pieces fall in the sweet spot between $20 and $98. Despite the reasonable prices, there is quality in the fabric used.

"We were looking for quality, but at a good price," Berger said. "It's hard to find the median, and we wanted uniqueness as well. We live on an island and nobody wants to walk down the street and see the same dress on someone else."

BERGER'S background in health education didn't put the Mrs. Hawaii International 2004 on track to be a designer, but she said, "It comes from the heart. I've been shopping since I was a little girl. It's a passion and I try to translate what's going on in the fashion industry to something that will work with Hawaii's climate and culture.

"I wear a lot of it, so a lot of it reflects my taste. I wear a lot of pants and tops so I'm working on a denim line. It's something I'm excited about. But what's cool is that there really is something for everyone. Our Zen Knits line alone has more than 125 pieces in 25 color choices."

The boutique also carries a large selection of accessories and jewelry, from inexpensive capiz shell earrings starting at $8 to silver-and-stone jewelry from Nepal and other stone jewelry that costs a few hundred dollars.
There are also bath and body products, small decorative kitchen and household goods, and gift items.
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Pineapples Boutique is at 66-200 Kamehameha Highway. Call 637-8477 or visit www.pineapplesboutique.com; get info on the latest deals at the boutique's Facebook page. Pineapples is offering a Black Friday promotion on Nov. 26 of 20 percent off everything except sale items, which are already 50 percent off.
 

Check out more of Style Editor Nadine Kam's shopping finds in a special Surf's Up! North Shore 2010 report at www.honolulupulse.com, where you'll also find dining recommendations and a complete rundown of Vans Triple Crown of Surfing events.